Men's Basketball Advances To SLIAC Championship After Win Over Red Devils

ST. LOUIS, Mo.—The Fontbonne University men's basketball team are headed back to the SLIAC Championship for the first time since 2021 after a 57-54 win over Eureka.

Brent Wagner led the way with 16 points on 5-of-10 shooting. Caden Clark recorded his first double-double with 11 points and a season-high 11 rebounds. Jaden Betton led off the bench with 10 points.

Things started out well for the Griffins in the first three minutes leading 7-0 on Wagner's three-pointer.

The Griffins remained in control leading 20-14 at the 6:39 mark on Elijah Rice's layup. However, the Red Devils outscored Fontbonne 12-2 the final six minutes leading by four at the break.

Neither team shot particularly well in the first with Fontbonne shooting 27.0 percent, while Eureka shot 33.3 percent.

In the second half, the Red Devils held onto its lead until Wagner hit back-to-back three-pointers giving Fontbonne a 35-32 lead with 10:48 remaining.

The back-and-forth play continued, but the Red Devils were on top 52-47 with 2:34 left after Noah Persich hit his three-pointer.

The Griffins, though answered with a 6-0 run over the next minute with Betton's layup giving them a 53-52 lead with just over a minute to go.

Then, with 23.0 seconds left, the Red Devils took a 54-53 lead after a steal and a bucket from Persich. However, the Griffins went 4-of-4 from the line to close out the game securing the 57-54 win.

The Griffins finished shooting 32.4 percent from the field, while the Red Devils ended the night hitting 35.1 percent of its attempts. Fontbonne pulled down 47 rebounds compared to Eureka's 42.

Up Next

The Griffins will face the top seeded Webster Gorloks on Saturday. Tip-off at 7 p.m.

Make sure to follow men's basketball on all its social media accounts: Twitter (@FBUBasketball), Instagram (@fbubasketball) and Facebook (/FontbonneUGriffins).